DALLAS, USA: A shooter with a rifle opened fire from a nearby roof onto a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement location in Dallas on Wednesday, killing one detainee and wounding two others before taking his own life, authorities said.
The exact motivation for the attack was not immediately known. The head of the FBI, Kash Patel, released a photo on social media that shows a bullet found at the scene with the words “ANTI-ICE” written in what appears to be marker.
The attack is the latest public, targeted killing in the US and comes two weeks after conservative leader Charlie Kirk was killed by a rifle-wielding shooter on a roof.
“The shooter fired indiscriminately at the ICE building, including at a van in the sallyport where the victims were shot,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a release about the Dallas shooting.
The detainee who survived was in critical condition at a hospital, DHS said.
No ICE agents were injured.
‘Targeted violence’
At a news conference, authorities gave few details about the shooting and did not release the names of the victims or the gunman.
The FBI said it was investigating the shooting as “an act of targeted violence.”
Officers responded to a call to assist an officer on North Stemmons Freeway around 6:40 a.m. Wednesday and determined that someone opened fire at a government building from an adjacent building, Dallas police spokesperson Officer Jonathen E. Maner said in an email.
Edwin Cardona, an immigrant from Venezuela, said he was entering the ICE building with his son for an appointment around 6:20 a.m. when he heard gunshots.
An agent gathered people who were inside, took them to a more secure area and explained that there was an active shooter, Cardona said.
“I was afraid for my family because my family was outside. I felt terrible because I thought something could happen to them. Thank God no,” Cardona said.
Cardona said his family was brought into the building, and they were later reunited.
The ICE facility is along Interstate 35 East, just southwest of Dallas Love Field, a large commercial airport serving the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area, and blocks from hotels catering to travelers.
Officials call for end to political violence
Shortly after the shooting and before officials said at least one victim was a detainee, Vice President JD Vance posted on the social platform X that “the obsessive attack on law enforcement, particularly ICE, must stop.”
Republican US Sen. Ted Cruz from Texas continued in that direction, calling for an end to politically motivated violence.
“To every politician who is using rhetoric demonizing ICE and demonizing CPB: stop,” Cruz told reporters, referencing Customs and Border Protection.
But immediately after the news conference in which officials refused to say whether the victims included detainees, Democratic US Rep. Marc Veasey called in to Dallas’ WFAA-TV newscast and told them he was “absolutely sickened” by some officials’ comments.
“If they are trying to control this narrative and they don’t want migrants to be the victim in this story, then they may want to slow-walk giving us any information about this so they can still keep on talking about attacks on ICE,” Veasey said.
The Rev. Ashley Anne Sipe, who prays outside of the Dallas ICE facility every Monday, called the shooting heartbreaking.
“Violence doesn’t heal anything,” Sipe, a pastor in Lewisville near Dallas, told The Associated Press.
Sipe and other local faith leaders who have decried deportations hold weekly vigils and serve as “moral witnesses.” They pray and observe for about three hours, watching as immigrants enter the building to meet with their advisers and to report for check-ins.
Over the past couple of months, Sipe said she has noticed that people who walk into the building are shuttled away on buses.
“They’re taking them away, and we don’t know where they’re taking them,” Sipe said.
Noem: ICE agents targeted
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem noted a recent uptick in targeting of ICE agents.
A July 4 attack at a Texas immigration detention center injured a police officer, who was shot in the neck. Attackers dressed in black military-style clothing opened fire outside the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, southwest of Dallas, federal prosecutors said. At least 11 people have been charged in connection with the attack.
Days later, a man with an assault rifle fired dozens of rounds at federal agents leaving a US Border Patrol facility in McAllen on July 7. The man, identified as Ryan Louis Mosqueda, injured a police officer who responded to the scene before authorities shot and killed him. Police later found other weaponry, ammunition and backpacks inside Mosqueda’s car.
In suburban Chicago, federal authorities erected a fence around an immigration processing center after tensions recently flared with protesters. President Donald Trump’s administration has stepped up immigration enforcement in the Chicago area for weeks, resulting in hundreds of arrests.
Ahead of the latest immigration operation, federal officials boarded up windows at the center.
Sixteen people have been arrested outside the center, according to federal authorities who characterized the activists as “rioters.”
Detainee killed, and 2 others critically injured in Dallas ICE facility, Homeland Security says
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Detainee killed, and 2 others critically injured in Dallas ICE facility, Homeland Security says
- The head of the FBI, Kash Patel, released a photo on social media that shows a bullet found at the scene with the words “ANTI-ICE” written in what appears to be marker
- The attack is the latest public, targeted killing in the US and comes two weeks after conservative leader Charlie Kirk was killed
94 million need cataract surgery, but access lacking: WHO
- Of the 94 million affected, fewer than 20 percent are blind, while the rest suffer from impaired vision
GENEVA: More than 94 million people suffer from cataracts, but half of them do not have access to the surgery needed to fix it, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
Cataracts — the clouding of the eye’s lens that causes blurred vision and can lead to blindness — are on the rise as populations get older, with age being the main risk factor.
“Cataract surgery — a simple, 15-minute procedure — is one of the most cost-effective medical procedures, providing immediate and lasting restoration of sight,” the WHO said.
It is one of the most frequently performed surgeries undertaken in high-income countries.
However, “half of the world’s population in need of cataract surgery don’t have access to it,” said Stuart Keel, the UN health agency’s technical lead for eye care.
The situation is worst in the WHO’s Africa region, where three in four people needing cataract surgery remain untreated.
In Kenya, at the current rate, 77 percent of people needing cataract surgery are likely to die with their cataract blindness or vision impairment, said Keel.
Across all regions, women consistently experience lower access to care than men.
Of the 94 million affected, fewer than 20 percent are blind, while the rest suffer from impaired vision.
- 2030 vision -
The WHO said that over the past two decades, global cataract surgery coverage had increased by 15 percent.
In 2021, WHO member states set a target of a 30-percent increase by 2030.
However, current modelling predicts that cataract surgery coverage will rise by only about 8.4 percent this decade.
To close the gap, the WHO urged countries to integrate eye examinations into primary health care and invest in the required surgical equipment.
States should also expand the eye-care workforce, training surgeons in a standardised manner and then distributing them throughout the country, notably outside major cities.
The WHO was on Wednesday launching new guidance for countries on how to provide quality cataract surgery services.
It will also issue guidance to help support workforce development.
Keel said the main issue was capacity and financing.
“We do need money invested to get rid of this backlog, which is nearly 100 million people,” he told a press conference.
While age is the primary risk factor for cataracts, others include prolonged UV-B light exposure, tobacco use, prolonged corticosteroid use and diabetes.
Keel urged people to keep up regular eye checks as they get older, with most problems able to be either prevented or diagnosed and treated.
The cost of the new lens that goes inside the eye can be under $100.
However, out-of-pocket costs can be higher when not covered by health insurance.
“Cataract surgery is one of the most powerful tools we have to restore vision and transform lives,” said Devora Kestel, head of the WHO’s noncommunicable diseases and mental health department.
“When people regain their sight, they regain independence, dignity, and opportunity.”
